Polishing machine



March 13, HUNTER POLISHING MACHINE Filed Sept. 30 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 1INVENTOR fiszzwwzcr ATTORNEYS March 13, 1934. H, HUNTER POLISHINGMACHINE Filed Sept. 30, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fist 6 77ATTORNEYS March 1934- J. H. HUNTER 1,950,555

POLISHING MACHINE Filed Sept. 30, 1929 3 SheetsSheet 3 INVENTOR BY m MATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 13, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT QFFECE 4 Claims.

The invention relates to polishing machines and has more particularreference to machines designed to polish the outer surface of insulatedWire. In the present state of the art insulated wire is provided with acovering of braided fabric for retaining the insulation and which isimpregnated with wax or other material which is capable of receiving apolish. This polishing may be accomplished by drawing the wire through adie but it has been found that to secure satisfactory results the speedof movement must be restricted. In other words, the best polish isobtained by a predetermined speed of relative movement of the burnishingsurface and the surface of the wire, and any increase in speed will bedetrimental to the resulting polish. Consequently the output of a.polishing machine is limited to the amount of wire that can be fed in agiven time interval at this predetermined speed.

It is the object of the present invention to increase the output of thepolishing machine by a construction which permits of feeding of the wireat any desired speed. At the same time it is an object to secure thehighest and most satisfactory polish. These objects have been attainedby the substitution of traveling polishing or burnishing surfaces forthe stationary surface of the usual polishing die and the inventionconsists in the novel means employed for this purpose as hereinafter setforth.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved polishing machine;

Figure 2 is a plan view thereof;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the polishing rolls;

Figure 4 is an enlarged cross section substantially on line 4-4 ofFigure 2;

Figure 5 is a. longitudinal section on line 55 of Figure 2.

As previously stated, my improved machine consists essentially in aconstruction where traveling polishing surfaces are substituted for astationary polishing member, thereby permitting an increase in the rateof feed of the wire through the machine. Such traveling polishers may beformed by rolls rotating in contact with the surface of the wire but ata differential surface speed, this differential being so calculated asto secure the best polishing effect.

In detail, A is a suitable frame for the mounting of the mechanism, B isa reel from which the wire to be polished is fed over an idler guidingroll C to a propelling feed roll D and finally to a receiving reel E.Intermediate the rolls C and D is arranged the polishing mechanism whichas shown is of the following construction:

The polishing members are in the form of grooved rolls F arranged inpairs on opposite sides of the wire and provided with means foryieldably pressing against the surface at a suitable pressure.Preferably there are two pairs of rolls F and F having their axesarranged in transverse planes so that the center of the polishingsurfaces of one pair will be ninety degrees from the center of thepolishing surfaces of the other pair. This will insure polishingcompletely around the circumference of the wire. The polishing rolls aredriven in timed relation to the driving wheel D which feeds the wire by'7. mechanism of the following construction: G is a motor or othersource of power from which motion is transmitted through the belt H andpulley I on the shaft I and thence through a. pulley I and belt J to apulley K which is on the shaft L for one of the rolls F of the pair F.The companion roll in the pair F is driven from the shaft L throughintermeshing gears M and M. There is also a driving connection betweenthe shaft L and a shaft N extending longitudinally of the frame, thisbeing through the medium of spiral gears O, 0. On the shaft N is mounteda spiral gear wheel N which through an intermeshing spiral gear (notshown) drives the shaft N of one of the rolls F of the pair F while theother roll of the pair is driven therefrom by intermeshing gears similarto the gears M and M. Thus all of the rolls F are driven at the sameperipheral speed.

The shaft N also forms the driving means for the feed roller D, whichlatter is on a shaft D having also mounted thereon a. gear wheel Dpreferably arranged within the peripheral flange of the pulley D.Intermediate the shaft N and the gear wheel D is a change gear mechanismcomprising the exchangeable pinion P journaled on a swinging link Q anddriven by the intermeshing gears R, R. The gear R is driven by beveledgears S from the shaft N and thus peripheral speeds of the drum D may bemade with any desired differential in relation to the peripheral speedof the rolls F. The periphery of the drum or pulley D is grooved and thewire is Wound there-around with one or more convolutions before passingto the reel E. This reel is non-positively driven by any suitable means(not shown) at a rate sulficiently higher than that of the pulley D soas to always take up any slack in the wire. Consequently the friction ofthe wire on the drum D will be sufficient to positively drive the wireat the same peripheral speed as that of the drum. To place the desiredpressure on the wire by the burnishing surfaces of the rolls F, one rollof each pair is journaled in a swinging arm S and a spring T yieldablypresses this arm in a direction to force the roll towards its companionroll.

With the construction as described in operation after the wire isengaged with the machine and passes around the feed drum D the rotarymotion of said drum will advance the wire at a rate determined by theselected change gear. This change gear also determines the relativerates of travel of the drum D and the burnishing rolls F so that withoutregard to how fast the drum D is rotating and the wire is fed, theburnisher acting on its surface will always have the desireddifferential speed. This will produce the best polishing effect whilepermitting the machine to feed the wire at a very high rate.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. An apparatus for polishing wire comprising means for feeding thewire, a pair of grooved burnishing rolls for embracing the-wire anddriving means for feeding the wire and rotating said rolls at apredetermined differential surface speed.

2. An apparatus for polishing wire comprising means for feeding thewire, a plurality of pairs of grooved burnishing rolls embracing saidwire and rotating in different planes and means for driving said wirefeeding means and said rolls at a predetermined diiferential surfacespeed.

3. A machine for polishing wire comprising a reel from which the wire isfed, a feeding roll or drum around which the wire is wrapped, areceiving reel for the wire delivered by said feeding roll, a pluralityof pairs of grooved burnishing rolls embracing the wire and arranged indifferent radial planes with respect thereto, and means for driving saidfeeding roll and polishing rolls at a predetermined differential surfacespeed.

4. A machine for polishing wire comprising a reel from which the wire isfed, a feeding roll around which the Wire is wrapped, a receiving rollfor the wire delivered from said feed roll, a plurality of pairs ofgrooved burnishing rolls embracing the wire intermediate said deliveryreel and feeding roll and arranged in different radial planes, a drivingmechanism for rotating all of said rolls at a predetermined peripheralspeed, a transmission between said roll driving mechanism and said feedroll and a change gear in said transmission mechanism for determiningthe differential surface speed of said polishing rolls and said feedroll.

JOSEPH H. HUNTER.

